When Hearts collide (An Arthur Morgan Rdr2 fanfiction)

Chapter 16: Letting go of the past

One would think, coming from a family that was wealthy, Mary would avoid a place like Valentine. It was chalk full, of drunks and degenerates. Not at all, the scene one would picture and upper class woman, to be set in. And as Peyton and I neared Chadwick Farm, I got to thinking, about what Mary had mentioned in her letter, about having run into some bad luck. It must've been pretty bad, if she had come all the way out here, and rented a room in a town far from what she was used to.

Upon further inspection, I found myself chuckling. Right smack in the center of the front yard, stood a large pen filled with sheep. And not just the sheep, but fresh dung, too. And if I remembered correctly, Mary didn't much care, for the smell of farm life. So, then, why here, of all places? Not to mention, the house a little way down from here, had pigs of all things. After all, this was a livestock town. All manner of livestock, were raised here.
"You know, this place isn't so bad, outside of the smell," Peyton says, looking a bit green in the face.
"Well, this is a livestock town, Peyton. It's gonna smell," I say.
"Has it always been this strong?" She asks.
"Only when it's a hot day, like today," I say.
"Ugh, God. Remind me, never ever raise sheep," she says.
"Haha, okay," I say, as we hitch our horses up, by the sheep pen.
"Don't get me wrong. They're cute and super fluffy. But, just ew," she says.
"Ewe would say that," I say, chuckling when she catches the joke.
"Oh, haha, very funny," she says.

Dismounting, I walk over and help her down from Sunbeam.
"Um, okay?" She says, once her feet are on the ground.
"So, you wanna walk up there with me? Or you wanna hear what I have planned?" I ask.
"I'm listening," she says, smirking.
I lean in, and whisper my plans to her.
"So, here's the plan. I'm gonna help you back up onto Sunbeam. You ride over there, behind that tree, staying out of sight," I begin.
"Wait, why am I hiding behind the tree, for?" She asks.
"To give the impression, I came to speak to her alone. Only, that isn't the case. We need to make it seem like I was here on errands, and that I in fact, wasn't alone. By hiding behind that tree, seeing where it's positioned, when I give you the signal, you ride up, like you came from town, and I reveal you and I are together," I say.
"Ah, trickery. I like that," she says.
"Exactly. But only you and I, know that that's what we're doin'," I say.
"What's the signal?" She asks.
I rest my hands on my belt buckle, shift to the right, and tap the toe of my left boot.
"Will you be able to see that, from over there?" I ask.
"If I'm positioned correctly, whilst remaining hidden, then yes," she says.
"Okay. Get back up on Sunbeam," I say, helping her up.

With one last reassuring glance, Peyton rides Sunbeam over to the tree and both hide behind it. Bracing myself, I make my way up onto the front porch, removing my hat, before knocking on the door. The door, opens slowly, the tip of a cattleman revolver, peeking through the small crack, along with a woman, who had a crazed look in her eyes.
"What you want?" She asks.
"I'm sorry to disturb you, ma'am. But, is Mrs. Linton in?" I ask.
"I'll go see," she says, before backing up slowly, and closing the door, once more.
Great, the woman Mary was renting from, was armed and not the friendly type. This I was not expecting.
"Mrs. Linton, there's a caller at the door, for you," I hear that woman say.
I didn't hear a response. But, I did hear movement, beyond the door, before it opened once more.
"Hello, Arthur," she says, when she sees it's me.
"Mary," I say.
"I can't believe you came. I didn't think you would. But, I hoped," she says.
"I was in town, runnin' errands anyways. So figured, I'd drop by," I say.
"I'm glad you did. You look...you look good," she says.

We stand in silence for a moment, before I finally boast the question that was currently on my mind.
"So, why are you here? Where's your husband at?" I ask.
"He died...," she says.
"Ah, I see now. You came here, lookin' for me, to rekindle what we once had, am I right?" I ask.
"Arthur, it's more than just that," she says.
"Oh yeah? Like what?" I ask.
"I won't lie. I think of you often. More often than I should," she says.
"Yeah, well, you shouldn't," I say, placing my hands on my belt buckle, leaning to the right and tapping the toe of my left boot, twice.
"I know I shouldn't. But, I can't help it. I regret how things went, between us," she says.
"Yeah, well, a bit late for that, ain't it?" I ask.
"What do you mean?" She asks.

At that precise moment, Peyton comes riding up, on cue.
"Arthur, there you are, hon. I was wondering where you'd gotten off to," she says.
"I told you, I was comin' to visit an old friend, sweetheart," I say.
"Oh, goodness me. I'd forgotten about that. Well, are you going to introduce us?" She asks, dismounting and appearing at my side.
"Yes. Peyton, this is Mary Linton. Mary, I'd like you to meet Peyton," I say.
"Wait, Mary Linton. The Mary Linton? The one who broke your heart, all them years ago?" Peyton asks, feigning surprise.
"The one and the same," I say.
"Well, howdy. It's nice to finally meet you. Arthur told me what happened between you two. So sorry to hear it," Peyton says, although I know she's not sorry at all.
"Hi. Um, I'm confused. Who exactly is she?" Mary asks.
"I'm Arthur's wife. We got married a couple of months ago," Peyton says, planting a kiss on my cheek.
"I...I didn't know you had taken a wife," Mary says, having gone pale.
"I have. And she's in a family way. We just found out yesterday," I say.
"Oh, well....that's...congratulations," Mary says, leaning against the door frame.
"Thank you. We can't wait to hear the pitter patter of little boots on the floor," Peyton says, her acting skills even more on point, than the first time, she'd used them.

Mary doesn't say anything. And that alone, tells me, she was looking to rekindle what had been lost, alright. But, unfortunately for her, I had already moved on.
"Well, I'm glad you're finally happy. I was going to ask a favor of you. But, I'll handle it on my own. Your family is more important, right now," she says.
"You're right. It is," I say.
"I won't write you, anymore. I know when to back off. And that's precisely what I'm going to do. You take care, Arthur," Mary says, before heading inside the farm house once more.
Part of me, felt bad, for having hurt her like that. But, she'd hurt me just as bad, if not worse, years ago. Besides, she needed to see, I had moved on. Peyton was my life now. And I wasn't allowing anything or anyone, to get in the way of that.
"Ready to go?" I ask Peyton.
"Yeah, lets go. I'm sure, we are going to be asked a ton of questions, when we return," she says.
"Lets hope not, and we can have a relaxin' evenin' before Dutch bombards us with endless work," I say, mounting up, and riding out, with Peyton following close behind. The past had been dealt with. And it could no longer haunt me.